


everything is gonna be okay

by hlukol



Series: Family AU [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Baby Jack Kline, Castiel and Dean Winchester are Claire Novak's Parents, Castiel and Dean Winchester are Jack Kline's Parents, Domestic Fluff, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Relationship, Jack Kline and Claire Novak are Siblings, Kid Fic, M/M, Married Castiel/Dean Winchester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-15 09:42:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29557194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hlukol/pseuds/hlukol
Summary: The time has come for Claire to start college. Some people take it harder than others.
Relationships: Castiel & Claire Novak, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Claire Novak & Dean Winchester
Series: Family AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2171529
Comments: 8
Kudos: 106





	everything is gonna be okay

**Author's Note:**

> Jack is 4/5 and Claire is 18/19. I am not from America so it might not all be completely accurate. They refer to both Dean and Cas as "dad" so apologies if it's confusing. Hope you enjoy! :)

“Goodbye, old man,” Claire said.

Dean spluttered, “Wh— I— Cas! You gonna let her talk to me like that?”

Cas sighed, exasperated with those two and their constant squabbling.

“Claire, don’t tell your dad that he’s old.”

Dean made an even more offended face.

“I’m not old,” he said, “I’m younger than you!”

“Barely.”

“Okay, okay,” Claire interrupted them, “Daughter leaving you for college over here.”

Cas sighed before turning to her, giving her a fond, yet sad, smile and pulling her into a tight hug.

“We’re gonna miss you.”

“Don’t make it a big deal, please,” she said, “I’ll see you guys in a couple weeks again.”

“Okay,” Cas responded, pulling out of the hug but keeping her only an arms length away, “Then… see you later.”

She smiled gratefully.

“See you later, dad.”

She hugged Dean before saying, “And you, too, dad. See you later.”

He repeated it back to her, giving her a kiss on the top of her head and letting her go.

She crouched down and hugged Jack.

“Bye, little man.”

“Bye, Claire.”

Together, Dean and Cas watched her walk over to the entrance. When she got there, she turned around, noticing they were still looking at her and waving them away. Dean made a gesture with his hand that said something like, _Okay, okay, we’re going._

—

“Let’s go home,” Dean said and put the keys in the car. Cas smiled, turning his gaze out the passenger window to look at Claire’s dorm building. He frowned when he noticed the car was on but they weren’t moving.

“Is something wron—“ he cut himself off when he saw Dean leaning over the steering wheel, crying into his hands. “Oh, Dean.”

He unbuckled the seatbelt and slid over on the bench, wrapping his arms around Dean.

“Dad?” Jack said from the backseat, “Can I come in the front?”

Cas let go of Dean and reached over to pick him up and help him up into the front seat. Dean didn’t notice at first—too busy crying—but it was hard to miss when about 40 pounds landed in his lap and two small hands pried his hands away from his face.

“It’s okay, dad,” Jack said, wrapping his arms around him, “I’m still here.”

Dean chuckled wetly, wrapping his arms around him.

“Yeah, you are.”

Cas smiled at the picture before him but was interrupted out of his daydreaming when his phone started ringing.

“It’s Claire,” he said before answering, “Hey.”

“Can you tell dad to stop crying so you guys can leave?”

Cas looked up, trying to locate her and finding her standing at the entrance of the dorm house. He chuckled.

“It’s an emotional day,” he said.

She rolled her eyes and hung up, grabbing her bags and walking back to the car. Cas opened the passenger door and got out.

“It isn’t exactly easy for me either, you know,” she said. Cas could see her eyes glimmer from where the sun was hitting her face. Cas smiled at her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

They both turned to Dean as he got out of the car, Jack sitting securely on his waist. The tears had stopped but his eyes were still red-rimmed.

“You’re soft,” she said to him, but her voice betrayed her, cracking at the second word.

“ _You’re_ soft,” he shot back. He sniffled, “I didn’t start crying until you left, anyway. Your fault for coming back.”

She scoffed but threw her arms around him, Jack getting squished between them.

“Who knows,” Cas started after Claire and Dean separated, in an attempt to change the subject, “Maybe you’ll even meet some cute girls.”

She chuckled, “Yeah. My number one priority is that I don’t get an annoying roommate. Though, I guess you can’t get worse than someone who listens to classic rock all the time.”

“ _Hey_ ,” Dean said, “You love classic rock.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“You listen to it all the time!”

“Okay, okay,” Cas interrupted them, “As much as I love listening to you two bicker, you” — he turned to Claire — “need to get yourself registered and set up, and we” — he turned back to Dean and Jack — “need to get going if we wanna make it home for bedtime.”

Dean looked at Claire, almost as if he had already forgotten they were going separate ways.

“You call if you need anything or anything happens?” he asked, “Even if it's as simple as how you cook noodles, capiche?”

She nodded, “Capiche.”

Dean nodded, seeming to have gotten what he needed.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Dean walked past him to put Jack back in the backseat.

“I’ll text you pictures,” Claire said.

Cas smiled, “Please, do.”

She nodded.

“Okay, goo— uhm, I mean, see you later.”

He nodded, “See you later.”

She turned and walked away for the second time. When she got to the entrance she threw a glance at them, waving. Dean closed the door to Jack just in time to see it. They waved back and then, she was gone.

Dean shook his head and hands, “Whew, okay! I’m ready.”

Cas gave him a look, “You’re not driving.”

“What? Of course, I am.”

“Dean, you’re still all blotchy, you’re in no condition to drive.”

Dean wanted to argue but stopped himself when he saw Cas’ face. He can be real stubborn when needed.

“Fine.”

He held out a hand, “Keys.”

Dean grumbled something under his breath as he handed them over, but Cas paid him no mind, just slipped into the driver's seat.

—

That night, after Dean was all cried out, and after putting Jack to bed, Cas started crying. Not the sobbing that Dean did, where it was more face contractions and shaking shoulders than actual tears, but the hollow, silent, never-ending tears just streaming down his face. He had been so busy thinking about Claire, then Dean, then Claire again, then Jack, that he never stopped to think about what he was feeling during all of it. Guess he knew now.

Dean found him like that, half lying on the couch, staring blankly at the turned off tv.

“Hey,” he said, walking over and sitting down next to him. Cas turned his gaze towards him.

“I miss her already.”

Dean sighed sadly, “I know, me too.”

He put a hand on Cas’ cheek, wiping away his tears.

“Wanna do something? To distract ourselves?”

Cas smiled slightly, “Like what?”

“Maybe watch a movie?” he suggested, “I mean, we can lie down and cry together too but that sounds sad.”

Cas laughed, looking away and wiping under his eyes with his sleeves.

“A movie sounds good.”

“Actually, let’s watch One Tree Hill.”

Cas laughed again, sitting up properly.

“Sure.”

“You love teen dramas,” Dean said.

“No, honey, that’s you,” Cas argued, “But I love you for it.”

Dean didn’t bother to argue with him on that, just reaching for the remote to turn on the tv. Together they settled on the couch, all wrapped up with each other. Dean pressed a gentle kiss to Cas’ lips.

“I love you, you know that?”

Cas smiled, closing his eyes and pushing his forehead against Dean’s.

“I know.”

“Good.”

“Now let’s watch some teens fuck shit up.”

“Let’s!”

He pressed play.

—

About an hour after they put him to bed, a very sleepy Jack came waltzing into the living room, rubbing his eyes.

“What are you doing up?” Dean asked, “Little boys aren’t supposed to be awake at 10 at night.”

“I can’t sleep,” he said, crashing into the couch, dramatically collapsing down on it.

“Alright, come here, baby.”

Dean made him stand up straight and then picked him up, putting him sideways in Cas’ lap, to which he immediately rested his head against his chest.

“When is Claire coming home?”

“We won’t be seeing Claire in person for a while now, sweetheart,” Dean said, “But we can talk to her on the phone and FaceTime.”

“Now?”

They shared a glance before Cas lifted his shoulder in a shrug.

“I can text her and ask?” he suggested, which Jack nodded eagerly at.

_Hey, are you up? Jack can’t sleep and wants to FaceTime._

Just a minute later his phone lit up with a call. He handed it to Dean, who pressed answer.

“Hi!”

“Hey.”

“Hi, Claire!” Jack shrieked out.

“Hey, Jack.” She laughed, “What are you guys doing?”

“We were just rewatching One Tree Hill.”

“Of course, you are.”

Dean scowled, “‘Of course, you are’. What’s that supposed to mean?”

“That you’re predictable.”

He scoffed but before he could say anything else, Cas spoke.

“Have you met your roommate yet?” he asked.

Claire shook her head, “No, she’s coming tomorrow.”

“Well,” Dean started, “To quote your father from earlier, ‘maybe it’ll be someone cute’.” He wiggled his eyebrows.

Claire sighed, tilting her head, “He was referring to literally anyone on campus, not my actual roommate. Besides, not everyone is gonna get the love of their life as their college roommate.”

Dean and Cas shared a look.

“Well, we didn’t know that right away.”

“I know, I know. You were friends then best friends then boyfriends, I’ve heard this a thousand times.”

Dean put a hand on his chest in exaggerated offence and scoffed, “Well, okay, young girl. No need to get all snappy on your fathers.”

She just smiled.

Cas looked down at Jack when he realised he hadn’t said anything for a while and saw that he had fallen asleep in his lap. He nudged Dean.

“Here,” Dean said and handed over the phone, “I’ll put him to bed.”

He gently picked Jack up, careful not to spook him so he woke up.

“How you doing, dad?” Claire asked when it was just the two of them.

Cas smiled, “I’m okay. Just miss you like crazy.”

“Just pretend I’m sleeping at Alex’s,” she said, trying to be nonchalant, “That’s what she told her moms to think. That she was sleeping at my place.”

Cas chuckled, “I’ll make sure to give Jody and Donna a call tomorrow to make sure you eat your breakfast.”

She smiled, looking down, away from the camera.

“I really miss you too,” she said quietly, sniffing, “Which is stupid, because I saw you guys just a few hours ago.”

“It’s not stupid,” Cas argued, “It’s a big change, it’s only natural to want something to resemble some sort of normalcy in all the chaos.”

She nodded.

“You’re so wise,” she said teasingly, making light out of her feelings, as she tended to do.

Cas rolled his eyes. They were both quiet for a moment before Claire spoke up.

“Well, I got to go. Bed isn’t made yet and I’m really tired.”

Cas nodded, “Okay, sleep tight, sweetheart.”

“Thanks, dad. Bye.”

“Bye.”

She was about to hang up when Cas said, “Wait! Here comes your dad.”

“You leaving already?” Dean asked, sitting down on the couch.

“We’ve been talking for like, 20 minutes.”

“So? I could talk some more.”

“Goodnight, dad.”

She hung up.

Dean threw his hands in the air, “So much for the tearful goodbye.”

“You already had one of those today.”

Dean pushed him and Cas laughed.

“Did it go well with Jack?” he asked when they both had calmed down.

“Oh, yeah. Out like a light.”

“Good.”

He smiled and leaned in, pressing a kiss to Dean’s lips. Dean hummed.

“You wanna crawl into our warm and cozy bed and make out until we fall asleep, Mr. Winchester?” Dean asked, getting up from the couch and holding out his hand.

Cas took it, “That sounds like a wonderful idea, Mr. Novak.”

Dean grinned.

—

Cas spent the night tossing and turning, and he had all but given up on sleep when the sun started peaking in through the blinds. He turned around and grabbed his phone from his nightstand, opening Candy Crush, planning to play that until Dean woke up. Which he did around 6.30.

“Morning, sweetheart,” he said.

Cas put the phone away, “Good morning.”

Dean stretched out, throwing his arms up in the air and straightening his legs out, before sagging back down again and sighing.

“Have you slept at all?”

Cas shook his head.

Dean held up an arm, “Come here.”

Cas crawled into his arms, pressing his face into his neck.

“How about I make you some breakfast, hm? We can let Jack sleep a little longer and eat in bed.”

“That sounds lovely, Dean.”

“Then it’s settled,” he said, pulling away so their faces lined up. He leaned forward, morning breath be damned, and kissed him. “What do you feel like having, baby?”

“Pancakes,” he whispered, “Then we can save some batter for Jack.”

Dean chuckled, “You just never think about yourself, do you?”

He shrugged.

“Pancakes it is.”

—

“Look,” Cas said, showing off his phone. They had just finished eating and Cas was about to start with the dishes when he got a text.

“Your brother?”

“Mhm.”

Dean looked over his shoulder, humming. On it was a text message, a picture of Gabriel with two girls on his arms.

“Jealous?” Cas asked.

Dean stepped up closer behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist.

“Jealous? Why would I be jealous? I got my best boy right here.”

“I’m 43, Dean,” he argued.

“And still as handsome as the day I met you.”

Cas couldn’t stop the smile he got at that.

“Suck up,” he said, no real power behind it.

Dean hummed, pressing his nose into Cas’ neck, right behind his ear.

“I got all I could ever want or need right here,” he said quietly, just for them. “There’s nothing for me to be jealous about.”

Cas smiled, “Ditto.”

Dean huffed out a laugh.

“Way to ruin a perfectly good moment.”

Cas turned in his arms.

“This seem ruined to you?”

He leaned forward, capturing Dean’s lips in a slow and gentle kiss.

”Hm… maybe not.”

“Maybe not,” he agreed, in a hushed voice.

The kiss evolved, Cas dragging his tongue along Dean’s lower lip, Dean eagerly letting him in.

“Maybe we can— Mmh, maybe we can fit in a little something before we wake Jack.”

Cas nodded without breaking the kiss.

—

After their little bedroom activity, Dean jumped into the shower as Cas woke Jack up. He sent him to the bathroom before breakfast and prepared the left over batter in the kitchen.

“Did you wash your hands?” Cas asked as Jack came into the kitchen.

He nodded.

“Let me smell.”

Jack held up his hands for Cas to smell. They smelled like soap.

“Good. Hop up on the chair and I’ll start the pancakes.”

As the second pancake was in the pan, a freshly showered Dean walked into the kitchen. He ruffled Jack’s hair before walking over to Cas, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“Hi,” he said softly.

“Hello.”

“Hi!” Jack piped up, making them both chuckle.

“Hi, little man,” Dean said. He walked back to him and wrapped his arms around him tightly, shaking him back and forth. Jack let out a loud laugh.

“Dad, stop! ‘M eating!”

“You’re _eating_? No way! Can I have some?”

“No!” he giggled, “It’s my pancakes.”

“Hm, alright, alright.”

Dean grabbed a fork on the table and quickly swiped a piece of Jack’s pancake, more to tease him than him actually wanting the pancake.

“Dad!” he giggled. “Get your own pancakes!”

Dean laughed.

“Love you, kid.”

“I love you, too, dad.”

He smiled, “Lucky me.”

—

Claire called as Dean was making a late lunch. He answered and put her on speaker.

“Hey, sweetie. You’re on speaker.”

“Oh, okay. Hey. What’s up?”

“Just making lunch. What are you up to?”

She sighed, “Unpacking. It’s boring.”

He chuckled, “Yeah, I remember.”

He flipped the bread in the pan, listening to Claire’s breathing on the other side of the phone and to Jack’s inconsistent blabbering to his toys in the next room.

“What time is your roommate coming?” he asked.

“Two hours,” she mumbled.

“You nervous?”

“A little.”

“I’m sure she’ll be good. It is a she, right?”

“Yeah. I don’t think it’s allowed to have boy/girl combinations.”

“Right.” He laughed, “Ironic.”

She chuckled.

“Where’s dad?”

“Sleeping.”

“Oh…”

“I can go wake him if you want.”

“Do you think he would mind?”

“Sweetheart, when has he ever minded?”

She chuckled, “True.”

“Just give me a sec.”

“Okay.”

He put the sandwich on the plate and turned off the stove. He grabbed the phone and made his way to their bedroom. Cas was fast asleep on the bed.

“Cas, sweetheart,” he said quietly, putting a hand on his arm and shaking it a little.

“Hm?”

“It’s Claire,” he said, holding out his phone, “She wants to talk to you.”

Cas rubbed his eyes before taking the phone, sleepily putting it beside him on the bed.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey, dad.”

Dean left them to talk, going back to the kitchen to eat with Jack.

—

“What did you wanna talk about?” Cas asked softly.

“Nothing, really. Just wanted to hear your voice.”

Cas smiled.

They ended up barely talking, just listening to each their breath over the phone. It made Claire feel better. And she knew, as long as she had her family, everything was gonna be okay. Even college.

**Author's Note:**

> Some points;
> 
> Lots of pet names and nicknames because I like that. Very small detail but they do drive the impala of course but they have seatbelts because apparently in canon it doesn't? Also once again no idea how college works, I'm just saying words. 
> 
> Comments are always appreciated and thank you SO much for reading!!!! :D
> 
> You can find me on tumblr; username is winchestcas.


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